Large Companies...

so far, from my experiences with Goodwill and Kroger, large companies fail at communication.

Goodwill:

the website is a nightmare if you want to find information about volunteering. why? because there is no information. searching for it is futile because it doesn't exist. I e-mailed them using their "contact us" link and was essentially told that I could indeed volunteer at the donation center a mile or so from my house. eventually, I walked in the place and spoke with an employee, who told me that I would have to go to a retail store; they don't allow volunteers in the donation centers. what? I sense a major failure in communication has occurred. thank the gods for the person who answered my call at the retail store. he gave me all the information necessary-- if he hadn't, I would have said, "screw Goodwill," like I'm saying to Kroger.

Kroger:

it seemed alright at first--wasn't difficult to find the application or store location. everything was hunky dory... until the part where one chooses which position one wants. I want to stock the store because I have no desire to deal with any shoppers anywhere for any reason. however, no such position seemed to exist, unless it's one of the 6 or so "clerks." utterly confused, I once again used the "contact us" link to ask which it might be. the reply was:

"Thank you for contacting us regarding this issue.  Unfortunately, the career section of the site and all applications are handled through Kronos, and they would need to be the ones to help you with anything to do with the online application.  To contact Kronos, either call them at 1-800-338-6321, or contact them by email at hiringhelpdesk@kronos.com. "

strange, but ok. so I contacted Kronos. the reply from them was:

"Thank you for your recent request.  Applicant and employee records are supported by, and are the property of, the company to which you applied. 

Please contact this company's hiring manager or human resource department to follow up on your application, just as you would if you submitted a paper application." 

 what. the. fuck.

moral of the stories: large companies aren't worth the time, unless, perhaps, you get lucky when you call them and are able to speak with a helpful or reasonable person.

edit: oh. my bad. there are 10 "clerks" listed along with 2 "stewards"

Things I've Learned from Watching Thumbelina Again

movie on YouTube

1. all animals wear clothes
2. being a native of France doesn't mean that you speak French
3. witches (and good ones at that) exist
4. planting barleycorn will create a flower from which a tiny, fully developed girl (16 years in age) will rise
5. animals can speak (and sing)
6. chicks hatch from eggs already wearing their own outfits
7. no one needs school
8. bumblebees are the cutest and fastest flying mounts. they also don't have stingers.
9. 16-year-old fairy guys look more like they're 20
10. saying, "I wonder if <insert creatures here> really do exist," will lead one to appear in the next 3 minutes or so
11. it's possible to know, trust, and love someone after flying with him/her and singing a song OR watching the person do that for 5 seconds
12. the seasons change after a day at the most
13. toads have Spanish accents and are good at singing
14. birds have French accents and are good at singing
15. a guy will tell you that you're beautiful, dress you up as a beetle, watch your beetle costume fly off because of a mild twirl, then call you ugly because you're not a beetle even though he already knew that
16. all bears wear sleeping caps and hold empty clay honey jars while hibernating
17. water completely freezes after 5 seconds in normal winter conditions
18. a person can survive being frozen like that after who knows how long
19. moles are blind, but can see
20. money>love
21. princes aren't as rich as moles
22. being engaged to a fairy will immediately give you wings and a new dress
23. it's perfectly acceptable to anyone and everyone to get engaged without your lover having met your parent(s) and it's equally fine to not notify them until the wedding
24. everything works out alright in the end